Can Couponing Help Your College Student?

1. Could couponing really help a college budget?

The use of coupons can help anyone save money, even a college student. Coupons can help you save money an everyday items such as toothpaste and deodorant but can also reduce the cost of eating out, entertainment and clothing.

• School Supplies

Not only that but there can be a savings to had on just about every consumer purchase. Office supply stores such as Staples offer weekly deals, coupons and online specials that allow you to get everything that you may need for school with as much as a 100% savings on some items. Yes…Staples has a reward program that will refund you as much as 100% of your purchase price.

• Personal Hygiene Items

CVS, Rite-Aid and Walgreens have reward programs that allow you to walk away with FREE items every week.

These reward programs encourages you to buy specific item from sale ad and reward you by refunding you a portion or in many cases, the full purchase price of the items. These rewards are issued in the form of a check or store credits depending upon the specific store and reward program.
Clothing Deals

Clothing stores such as The Limited, JCPenney, Old Navy and American Eagles Outfitters offer percent off discounts almost weekly. Nike and JCPenney send out great coupons in their newsletter and will alert you to an upcoming sale. It’s FREE and easy to sign with a stores newsletter and some allow you to select what material you will receive.

Dining Out

In addition, many eateries are teaming up with Restaurant.com to offer you dining certificates for as little as $2 for a $25 dining certificate. The site is very user and you can print your certificate immediately or save it for later.

When it comes to eating out, it’s always a good idea to save any coupons that came with your previous order. It’s also a good idea to check online to find printable coupons.

2. Are there unique savings that apply just to college students?

There are certain places that offer discounts for students such as the airlines and movie theaters. The best way to go about getting discounts is to ask. Companies often offer education related discounts but you must ask about them to see if they are available.

3. How much time would it take to devote to couponing? Is it worth the savings?

Using the principles I teach in my Grocery 101 workshop and share in my Coupon 101 eBook, you can expect to spend as little as twenty minutes a week filing, clipping and or printing your coupons.

Many of the coupons that you would find in your Sunday paper can be print online at the major coupon distributors such as coupons.com and redplum.com.

If you are already thinking 20 minutes is a long time, then look at it from a different perspective. If you invest twenty minutes in clipping out the coupons that can save you over 50% or more on your purchases, it really becomes a matter of how important money management is too you.

Anytime you are able to reduce your out of pocket cost, you are creating more money for your savings account or to be used toward school expenses.

4. Does couponing only apply to “junk food”? Can a college student live healthier with the help of coupons?

I purposely neglected to mention the fact that you can also save big on grocery purchases. I did this because it would have been stating the obvious.

Every adult alive today has seen someone at some point implement the use of a coupon at the grocery store. So the question is not a matter of do they work. We’ve seen that demonstrated already. The question I really need to answer is “Are there coupons for the products I consume?”

Shopping with coupons will allow you to buy and try things you may not have considered trying before. Manufacturers are producing coupons for every department in your local grocery store. Whether you like ethnic foods, pre-packaged, vegan, dairy, bakery, produce or deli products, there is a coupon. If you are seeking a coupon for a specific product always be sure to visit the manufacturer website and look for words like “special offers”, “promotions” or “coupons”.

5. What is the best way for a college student to take advantage of couponing?

The best way to begin, is to learn the basic principles of coupon usage, which is covered in my workbook and my workshop. Both resources will show you how coupons and sales can be used to your advantage.

Visit the websites of your favorite stores and register for their email newsletter. Doing this will allow you to begin receiving coupons and sale alerts.

When you find that great deal and have clipped or printed your coupons don’t forget to use them. It’s never fun to realize that you could have saved even more had you remembered to hand over your coupons.

Saving money with coupons is not just for mom’s and grandmas anymore. Many companies are beginning to distribute percent off coupons and those who are using them are racking up the savings.